Studio Seitz Turns a 1910 Brooklyn Babka Factory Into a Duplex

By Elena Vasquez

Kevin Seitz and Rob van Wyen, founders of Swiss furniture brand Studio Seitz, spent eight years converting a 1,200-square-foot (111-square-metre) former 1910 babka factory in Williamsburg into a duplex, home, workspace and showroom. The factory shell offered soaring ceilings, dramatic natural light and original timber beams, which the couple saw as the basis for a full gut renovation.

Seitz and van Wyen weren't actively looking for a loft, let alone one in the flashy Williamsburg neighbourhood. They chose an eight-year schedule, allowing them to test ideas as they worked rather than settle a layout before construction began.

What did the renovation recover?

Seitz and van Wyen found heavy concrete stairs and synthetic bamboo floors left by a previous residential conversion. Those elements obscured the loft's original character, so the couple sought to restore it while adding visual and structural references to Seitz's native Switzerland: Zurich's Helmhaus Art Museum, its viaduct system and chalet architecture.

Seitz and van Wyen estimate that they carried out 85% of the renovation themselves. Their own labor accounted for more than four out of every five parts of the job. The process also revealed and refined the duplex's architectural origins.

Seitz explained the value of the slow schedule: “One of the advantages of renovating your own home slowly is that you have the luxury of trying something before deciding whether it’s right.” Van Wyen linked that approach to their product development: “We work similarly with our designs; prototyping, living with things, and learning from them.”

Van Wyen summarized the result: “A lot of work went into making the apartment feel simple.” Seitz and van Wyen then concealed insulation and electrical systems between exposed rafters, maximizing ceiling height and clarifying the structure.

The restrained palette uses dark kitchen joinery, blackened steel window frames, tactile timber surfaces and stainless hardware. Van Wyen explained how repetition bound the rooms together: “We reduced the number of materials and colours throughout the loft and repeated certain details. It helped connect spaces that had previously felt unrelated.”

Swiss precision also governs the layout. The couple tested its geometric alignment many times with temporary walls, then placed circular power outlets and cabinet pulls to reinforce the measured order.

Straightening the main staircase freed valuable ground-level space. The couple used that area for a private bedroom, walk-in wardrobe and laundry area.

Unexpected spatial cavities yielded another set of interventions. A hidden mezzanine serves as a 3D-printing workspace and guest loft, while a former coat cupboard became a quiet study behind a frameless pocket door.

Seitz said: “Inhabiting the space during construction allowed us to observe how sunlight moves across seasons, directly shaping our artificial lighting scheme.” Seasonal daylight became a practical tool for shaping the artificial lighting plan.

How does the duplex work as a showroom?

The duplex displays Studio Seitz's own designs throughout the home. The visible range includes:

• Studio Seitz: Helm sofa, Limmat occasional table, Appenzeller sideboard and Chalet seating.
• USM Haller: A stainless-steel shelving system.

The fit-out also combines Scandinavian additions. Reform supplied the kitchen cabinetry, while Vipp supplied bathroom vanities, lighting and furniture.

Van Wyen said of the USM Haller installation: “The system almost disappeared into the architecture.” One particularly Swiss detail is a clock that hovers between the living area and kitchen. Van Wyen said:

“The clock is an actual Swiss Railways clock. We tracked down the manufacturer and had them make one for us. It's illuminated and connected to a terminal so that the time is completely accurate. Leave it to the Swiss.”

Beyond the furniture, the home contains personal objects gathered from family, travels and fellow creatives. The collection includes:

• An Andrew Zuckerman portrait of a snowy owl in the bedroom.
• Handcrafted ceramics by Marcie McGoldrick.
• A cowbell-shaped trophy won by Seitz's grandfather, a champion pistol shooter.

The combination turns the duplex into a domestic showroom for Studio Seitz. Seitz explained why place matters:

“Seeing furniture in person is incredibly important because there is a quality of the hand and a feeling that you can't get from a photograph. In our home you get that, but you also get the wider context. A showroom lets you touch and experience a piece, but there is an intimacy that comes from visiting someone's home and seeing how the designers themselves actually live with it.”

The arrangement turns Studio Seitz's prototyping method into a public demonstration. For future designs, the duplex can extend that method: the founders live with a piece, learn from its use and show visitors how it works in context.